


love in concrete; growing, blooming, persisting

by littlesaintmick



Category: Professional Wrestling, World Wrestling Entertainment
Genre: Abuse, Anal Sex, Implied Sexual Abuse, M/M, Oral Sex, Past Drug Addiction, do you know how painful it is to type in 'brock/finn', i don't even know what all this is gonna need tags for man this shit is heavy, i'm sorry that you all are gonna have to sit through that, man this is a hell of an au, okay adding tags because i want everyone to know beforehand to be mad, semi graphic and graphic descriptions of abuse, there's a lot of fucking in this one
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-05
Updated: 2018-07-24
Packaged: 2019-06-05 15:12:30
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,037
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15173426
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlesaintmick/pseuds/littlesaintmick
Summary: roman, dean, and seth have been recently released from prison after a ten year sentence. they're trying to get back on their feet, and stumble upon someone who can help in ways they never expected.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> so! this deal with a lot of really heavy themes! drug use, not-totally-wanted sex work, prison experiences, abuse, just. a whole whole lot goes on in this story. read with caution.

Roman closed the door gently behind him and took a seat in front of the desk. He inhaled deeply and swallowed. 

“Hello, Roman.”

“Hello, Mr. Foley.”

The man behind the desk-Mick Foley, whom Roman always suspected was a grizzly bear living undercover in human society-smiled at him, easy and comforting. He was a good man and a sweet one, and Roman felt himself calm down a little. 

“How are you doing?”

“I’m okay.”

“And Seth and Dean?”

“They’re….they’re okay.”

“Hesitated.”

Roman bit his lip.

“They-they lost their jobs. I don’t-it wasn’t their fault, though-”

Mick sighed and looked over a few papers on his desk and read something on his computer. 

“Yeah, their parole officers noted that. Wanna tell me what happened?”

Roman rubbed his hands over his thighs. 

“Well-Seth...he kinda-there was a guy at his job who was being awful and homophobic and Seth….removed him from the premises. Physically. But he didn’t have a choice, he shouldn’t have been fired. And Dean….he had an episode. A-it was a bad one, and the guy he was working for-I guess freaked out over it.”

It had taken Seth and Roman twelve hours to calm Dean down and bring him back to earth. Mick nodded-Roman knew Mick empathized.

“Where are you guys living right now?”

“With one of Seth’s friends.”   
Mick shot him a look.

“There aren’t any drugs in the house. I swear, these girls aren’t like that.”

“How is it going at your job?”

Roman shrugged, staring down at his hands. 

“It’s okay. Uh. My boss gave me a small raise, cause-I guess I’ve been doing good.”

“That’s great! That’s an improvement, Roman.”

“Yeah….I guess-”

Roman’s breath hitched and he brought a hand up to cover his eyes. He had already felt emotional coming into the meeting, but he’d hoped to be able to hold back until he got...well. ‘Home’ wasn’t the right word.

“Roman? What’s going on, buddy?”

Roman took a deep, shaky breath, and sniffled, a few tears slipping by. 

“I just-I want us to be okay, I want us to have-to not have to move from place to place every two weeks or live in the car, I want-I want us to have a normal goddamn life-and we’re trying, all of us are, but-we just-I feel like I can’t provide for them-”

Mick handed Roman a box of tissues and Roman took one. He hated feeling like this. He felt helpless and weak and he hated not being able to provide for his partners. Roman adored Seth and Dean with every atom of his being, and the fact that he couldn’t provide them with the life he knew they deserved, it...it hurt him. He wiped his tears with the tissue and sniffled. 

“Sorry-I hate being like this-”

“It’s okay, Roman, it’s good to let your emotions out. I’m happy you’re becoming more open with me.”

Roman watched as Mick looked through a few areas of his desk, until he retrieved a small business card. 

“I think I know someone who can help you, Roman. All three of you.”

Roman took the card and looked at the name and number and email address.

“Finn Balor?”

“Mhm. Finn’s a great guy, the best, he’s a doctor but he works with a non-profit helping homeless people and felons get jobs, housing. He’s the sweetest guy you’ll ever meet, but he won’t take any bullshit. If you fuck up, he’ll chew your ass out. He might do it in Japanese.”

Roman raised an eyebrow but looked back down at the card.

“What do I-do I just call him?”

“Tell him I sent you.”

Roman nodded. Maybe this Finn Balor guy would be able to help them. Roman would try anything at this point.

\---

Seth wrapped his arms around Roman and pulled him in for a kiss. Roman felt the tension melt off of him, and he smiled against Seth’s lips. He pulled away and rested his forehead against Seth’s. 

“Hey, baby.”

“Hey, Romeo.”

Roman sighed, but smiled at the nickname and listened to the sound of Dean in the kitchen with Sasha. They were staying with Sasha and her girlfriend-Seth and Sasha had dated in high school but remained close, or as close as possible considering where Seth had spent a decade-and she was a wonderful host. Roman made his way to the kitchen and smiled at the sight. Dean was dancing-terribly-and working on dinner, Sasha swaying her hips while chopping vegetables. 

“Hi, baby. Hey, Sasha.”

Dean whipped around and smiled, running towards Roman and jumping into his arms.

“Roman! I missed you today!”   
“I missed you too, baby. How was it today?”

Dean pulled away, cheeks slightly flushed. 

“It…..was pretty bad.”   
“Shit. You okay now?”

“Uh….I’m….better? 

“Are you?”

Dean nodded. 

“Seth was here with me. It didn’t get too far. Didn’t hurt myself or anything.”

Roman pulled Dean flush against his body and kissed the side of his head. 

“I’m proud of you, Dean.”

Dean pressed his face to Roman’s neck and kissed the skin there.

“You taste like sweat.”

Roman laughed and squeezed Dean’s waist. 

“I’m gonna go shower.”

Dean went back to cooking and Seth followed Roman into the bathroom.

“Have you called that number Mick gave you yet?”

“No, not with all the overtime.”

Seth bit his lip, and Roman sighed. He pulled Seth into his arms and kissed his cheek, nuzzling his beard. 

“Hey, don’t worry about that, baby. I’ll call tomorrow morning during my break.”

“I just….I got us some money for bills today.”

Roman frowned. He pulled back enough to look at Seth, and he sighed when Seth wouldn’t meet his eyes. 

“Seth, what did you do?”

“It was just one guy, it was quick-we used protection and everything-”

Roman groaned and rubbed his hand over his face. 

“Seth, you can’t do that anymore, if someone found out or if you got caught-”

“I know, but-it’s enough to cover the phones and-and there’s extra to give to Sasha-”

Roman cupped Seth’s face and made him make eye contact. 

“Seth, honey, I love you so, so much, and I know you want to try, but we can’t get caught doing anything illegal. We’re not going back, not now or ever, okay? You’re gonna find another job, so is Dean, and we’re gonna find a place of our own. But we can’t do that if we end up back in prison. Please, please promise me that you won’t do that again.”

Seth pouted but nodded, and Roman kissed the round tip of Seth’s nose. That got a small smile from him, and Roman did it again. 

“Wanna jump in the shower with me?”

Seth bit his lip again, an entirely different look on his face than before. Roman pushed him against the sink and suddenly pressed his lips to Seth’s, rocking his hips against him, groaning when he felt Seth’s cock swelling under his shorts. 

“Fuck-baby, come on-come on, baby, God-I need to fuck you-”

Seth stripped quickly and so did Roman, both of them laughing as they turned on the shower-they stumbled a little and Seth reached into the drawer under the sink and grabbed a bottle of lube. 

“Thank God for Dean’s insistence on putting these everywhere, huh?”

“He’s all about that preparedness shit.”

They both got into the shower, and Roman sighed at the water hitting his skin. He really needed this. He felt Seth press up against him, rubbing against him. 

“Mm. That feels nice, baby.”

“Yeah? Bet you’d feel even nicer with your cock inside me.”

Roman grinned and turned, facing Seth and kissing him again. He loved kissing Seth, he loved being with Seth, and he took the bottle of lube from his boyfriend’s hand and opened it. He spread some of the slick on his fingers and reached down, pushing a finger against Seth’s hole. Seth gasped and wrapped his arms around Roman’s shoulders, kissing him under the spray of hot water. 

“Oh-God-Roman-Roman!”

Roman got him open quickly, making sure he was lubed up thoroughly-he always was careful when he topped either of his partners-and he positioned Seth the way he wanted, Seth braced against the wall, and he easily thrusted into him. The three of them didn’t worry about protection, not with each other, not for years. They were-with the exception of occasionally trying to make money-exclusive with each other. 

Though they were all open to expanding their relationship, if they met the right man. 

Seth pushed his hips back against Roman and moaned, and Roman took a moment to admire his lover’s body. He was still a little thinner than he should be-prison had really done a number on all three of them-but he was gorgeous as he’d always been, tan skin and thick muscle and long, dark hair. Roman ran a hand up and down Seth’s back, soothing him, trying to help him relax.

“Fuck-fuck, Rome-oh my God-”

“Fuck, I needed this, Seth-I love you, baby, fuck-”

Roman thrusted a few times, slowly, before picking up the pace. He didn’t want to use up too much hot water and he leaned forward, his front pressed to Seth’s back, snapping his hips forward. Seth was whimpering quietly, and Roman reached around and gripped his cock tight, pumping him until he was making more noise, tightening around Roman and coming. Roman grinned, Seth must have been turned on earlier and hadn’t been able to release it. 

“God-fuck, Seth, I’m gonna come too-”

Roman grunted, thrusting into Seth a few more times as he came. He held onto his boyfriend’s hips for a moment, keeping him close, before pulling out. His knees were a little shaky and he pulled Seth into his arms, kissing and licking at the wet skin of his chest. Roman felt hands in his hair and he smiled, letting Seth clean him up. He always felt better after showering with one or both of his boyfriends.

They got out and got dressed right as dinner was finished, and Dean wasted no time in cuddling up to both of them on the couch, three big plates of food in front of them. Roman loved times like these, where things were okay and they weren’t all terribly stressed. Sasha and her girlfriend, Ember, were happy too, and it was a nice evening in. 

Roman helped with the dishes while Dean and Seth got the pull-out bed fixed up. It wasn’t the most comfortable on the planet, but it was better than their car or the pavement. It was also inside, where it was warm and safe, and that’s really what mattered. Roman and Dean and Seth all said goodnight to Ember and Sasha, before arranging themselves on the bed; Roman on one end, Seth in the middle, and Dean on the other end. Roman reached over Seth and held Dean’s hand, listening to his boyfriends talk as he fell asleep. 

\---

Roman sighed and listened to the dial tone. He pulled his jacket tighter around him. It was just now starting to get colder outside, and he had never really been a fan of cold temperatures. 

“Finn Balor, how may I help you?”

Roman startled at the confident, accented voice.    
“Uh-hello, my name is-I’m Roman Reigns-”

“Oh! Yes, hello, Roman, Mick told me you’d be giving me a call, hello-what can I do for you?”

Roman cleared his throat.

“I’m….not really sure, actually. Uh. Did Mick tell you about...my whole situation?”

“No, he just told me your name and that you were in a bit of a rough patch. Uh-listen, are you free around six today?”

“I work until five forty-five, so-yeah, I should be good.”

“How about we meet up somewhere and you can tell me more? I have an appointment in a few minutes, I’m sorry I can’t talk now-”

“It’s-yeah, it’s okay, I just-have to call my-friends, and tell them where I’ll be. Uh. How about the deli on 23rd and Western?”

“Sounds perfect. I’ll see you then, Roman.”

They said goodbye and Roman hung up, looking at his phone. Well. He got that done. He texted Dean and Seth to let them know what he’d be doing that night, and headed back inside for the rest of his shift.

\---

Roman sat at the table, picking at a napkin. He’d gone ahead and bought himself a soda and a cookie, he was working on learning that it was okay to occasionally buy a nice thing for himself, even if it was something small, and he had time to kill until Finn got there. 

He didn’t know what Finn looked like, but he was hopeful about this meeting. Roman desperately wanted himself and his partners to be okay, to be stable, but it just...wasn’t possible, it seemed. 

“Roman?”

There was that Irish accent, and Roman turned to look at the source. His eyes widened a bit and he knew his jaw had dropped. 

“Hi-yeah, hi, I’m Roman. Finn?”

Finn smiled a big, bright smile and held his hand out. Roman stood and shook it, pulling out Finn’s chair for him and sitting back down. The Irishman sighed as he sat, still smiling. He had such a bright look about him. 

“So, you’re one of Mick’s parolees?”

Well, Roman could respect that Finn wasn’t about to waste time.

“Yeah. Uh. Me and-my partners, we’re all on parole right now.”

“Partners?”

Roman blushed. 

“Not like-’partners in crime’ or anything like that, it’s-they’re my boyfriends. Uh. Seth Rollins and Dean Ambrose, I don’t know if Mick mentioned them-we’ve been together since before-everything happened.”

Finn was watching and listening intently-though Roman could tell that Finn wasn’t actually looking him in the eye, but rather at a spot on his forehead. He noted that for another time. It wasn’t something he took offense to, both Dean and Seth often had trouble keeping eye contact.

“What exactly was it that happened?”

Roman cleared his throat. 

“Uh...we-all three of us-we’d just gotten out of high school and we were all kinda in...rough spots. Dean and Seth had god-awful home lives and I wasn’t doing great, either, and….Seth started using heroin. Dean’s foster parents had been selling it to him, and one night, they-they started saying he had to do something back for them. And-I know it was stupid, we should’ve gone to the cops, but-fuck, man, we were only eighteen, and me and Dean-Dean had already done a few things for his foster parents but never gotten caught-but we wanted to help Seth, cause he was really fucked up at that point-”

Roman took a deep breath. It had happened ten years ago, but it had screwed up their lives immensely. It wasn’t something he could ever forget that he did.

“-we wanted to help Seth, no matter what. And so-they gave Seth and Dean knives and they gave me a gun-I guess cause I was, I don’t know, ‘trustworthy’ or something-and we….we broke into this person’s house. We were there to steal shit and I guess to threaten the person, and someone was awake when we got there, and they called the cops. Then Dean beat the guy over the head, and we started-doing what we were there to do, but the cops caught us running away. It-”

Roman poked and pushed at the torn little pieces of napkin on the table. He brought up his hand and wiped the back of it across his face. 

“We got ten years. First degree burglary, but they found out the circumstances and cut the assault charges. I guess it was good that Dean’s foster parents got put away for, you know-all the drugs and shit, and for beating on Dean-but uh. Yeah. My family stopped talking to me after that. We went to prison. Seth kept finding ways to get drugs in there until about eight years in, but-he’s been clean since, and we’re trying to keep things that way-uh-”

Roman wiped his hand over his face again. He didn’t necessarily hate crying or feel weak when he did, but he couldn’t help but feel a little shy about it. He almost flinched when a pale hand covered his own.

“Thank you for your honesty, Roman. It sounds like you did the wrong things, but...maybe for the right reasons. You wanted to protect and help your partner, and-trust me, I know from experience how far you can be willing to go for love.”

Roman nodded and swallowed. 

“You’ve served your time. You clearly feel bad about all of this, and are trying to live a better life now. Anyone can respect that. I’d like to meet with Seth and Dean as well before making any final decisions about what you all need, but I think the organization I work for can help.”

“What-what exactly do you do?”

“Well, we generally start by giving a monthly stipend to the people we’re trying to help-it’s monitored, as well-for food and bills and rent, and we help them find a place to live with a lease of at least two years. It’s kind of a ‘three strikes and you’re out’ thing, too. But if you or your partners were having trouble finding or keeping a job, we’d help with that, too, we do a lot of job placement. We also provide or help locate medical services-such as rehabilitation for drug users, or mental health care.”

Roman perked up at that.

“Like therapy or medication?”

Finn raised an eyebrow.

“Is that relevant to you and your partners’ situation?”

Roman shifted in his seat. He didn’t really like telling people about Seth and Dean’s issues, but he knew he needed to be honest with this guy.

“I mean...I don’t know what either of them have specifically, cause we’ve never been able to get them diagnosed-but I’ve always suspected-and I’ve read up on it, too, that Dean might be autistic? And-he has something else, but I don’t know what. And Seth-he kinda has a problem with compulsive lying, and he gets angry a lot-like, more than most people do, and it’s-he gets violent sometimes when he’s angry. He’s gotten better at it in the past year or so, I think….I honestly think maybe doing drugs had something to do with that, how bad it got.”

Finn nodded and wrote some things down in a small notebook. 

“We would very likely be able to help both of them with-if nothing else-getting a diagnosis and finding someone who could help or prescribe them something.”

Roman sighed and felt a smile come to his face. 

“God-thank you, I-”   
“Don’t thank me yet. Like I said, I still need to meet them, but I think this will work out.”

Roman bit his lip. He hadn’t thought to ask until now, but he figured if he’d been honest, maybe Finn would be, too.

“Why do you do this?”

Finn tilted his head. It was a cute look on him.

“Do what?”

“Helping people. Like me, I mean. Felons and shit like that.”

Finn blushed, and Roman was a little fascinated by the play of pink on his cheeks.

“When I was fourteen, I ran away from home. I was a bit of a problem child. And I was homeless, all the way up until I was nineteen. During that time, I prostituted myself, I sold drugs, I robbed people. I did many things I still regret. I’d still be in that situation-or worse-if it hadn’t been for a man who found me and helped me. He got me off of the street and into a place where I could heal, and he-”

Finn shook his head and laughed at himself. 

“I still have quite a few issues of my own, Roman. Mental illness, I-I’m actually autistic as well-and I’ve always had some lingering physical issues from that period, but-someone helped me, and I wanted to repay him, and he always told me the best way I could ever do that would be to help others. So I do. That’s one of the reasons I became a doctor, and that’s why I do work for the non-profit as well.”

Roman nodded. He could understand that and respect that. 

“Are the three of you free on Saturday?”

“Yeah. I have a split shift that day, so if you’re not doing anything around noon, we should all be available.”

“Wonderful, I look forward to seeing all of you. Do you need to get home, or would you like to tell me more about your situation?”

Roman took a deep breath.    
“I can tell you more.”

Anything to help get Seth and Dean a better life. 

\---

Roman looked up at Dean, grinning as much as he could and swallowing around his cock. He loved sucking Dean’s cock, it was thick and heavy and he came so much, Roman sucked harder and moved his head up and down. Seth was on his side next to them, leaning up on one elbow and watching. He ran his other hand over Dean’s belly, rubbing him and occasionally straying up to play with his nipples. Dean’s chest wasn’t as sensitive as Roman’s, but he liked it anyway. 

“Mm-fuck-Roman-please, don’t-we have that meeting soon?”

They did have the meeting with Finn, but it wasn’t for an hour. Roman’s boss had cut his shift to just later in the day, which he was fine with. He’d put in crazy overtime over the past few weeks anyway, so it wasn’t a huge loss pay-wise. Roman hummed around Dean and looked up as Seth leaned in and kissed him, tangling one hand in Dean’s gorgeous red hair. Roman focused on Dean’s cock, pushing his head all the way down until he felt the head hit the back of his throat, and he kept at that, deepthroating Dean and swallowing around him over and over until he felt Dean pulse, filling his mouth with come. 

“Oh-Romie-come on, pull off-”

Roman obeyed and pulled off of Dean, smiling and swallowing. He rubbed Dean’s thighs and sighed, Seth reaching up and gripping Roman’s cock, stroking him in a tight fist slowly. He let his boyfriend jerk him off, shifting so that he was closer to Dean, and he gently rocked his hips forward. 

“You’re so gorgeous, Roman.”

Roman flushed and smiled down at his boyfriends. They loved complimenting him, even though he was thinner now, not quite at his peak. 

“Gonna come on me, Rome?”

“Fuck-yeah, baby-fuck-move your hand a little faster, baby, come on-”

Seth increased his pace and worked his fist over Roman’s cock, until Roman groaned, squeezing Dean’s thighs tight as he shot onto Dean’s chest. He took a moment to catch his breath and Seth squeezed his ass, and Roman shook his head, smiling. 

“Let’s get cleaned up, you two. That Finn guy probably isn’t gonna want us smelling like sex when we meet.”

Roman couldn’t really argue Seth’s point, so they all jumped in the shower together. They did most things together, no matter what, and it saved time and hot water. Roman and Seth sat patiently while Dean brushed their hair and put it up-nothing extravagant, but nicely out of the way-and they all got dressed. They all wore some of the nicer clothes that they had (gifts courtesy of Sasha), and piled into the car. 

Roman drove-Seth’s hands were shaky that day, and Roman knew stress would only worsen it-and the drive to the restaurant they were meeting Finn at was blessedly short. Long car rides made Dean uncomfortable. Finn was standing outside, leaning against his own car, and he looked unfairly gorgeous for someone who was doing nothing but looking at their phone.

Roman, Seth, and Dean all got out of the car and Roman led them to Finn.

“Hey.”

Finn looked up and smiled, that almost-unbearably bright smile again, and stepped forward. 

“Hello! Roman, it’s nice to see you again. This must be-”

“Seth Rollins.”   
“Dean Ambrose.”   
Finn shook their hands as they introduced themselves and Roman wrapped an arm around Dean’s waist as they made their way in.

“Lunch is on me, gentlemen, I hope that’s alright.”

Roman knew none of the three of them were terribly comfortable with that, but Finn looked too happy for them to say anything.

“That’s very nice of you, thank you.”

They sat at a table, Dean across from Finn and Roman across from Seth, and Finn smiled at all of them again.

“So, Seth, Dean, Roman has told me a bit about what your situation is, as a group-as a triad, I suppose, and I wanted to talk to both of you, and hear your experiences directly, and learn some more about what exactly you would like to see in your lives going forward.”

Their drinks came and they ordered their food, and Roman noticed that he and his partners had all ordered something that was filling, but cheap. Seth cleared his throat and shifted in his seat. Dean gripped his hand and Roman knew that would help. 

“Uh-I guess Roman told you how...what happened, it was-pretty much on me, uh-”

“Let me stop you there.”

They all looked at Finn, eyes a little wide. Roman could see the beginning of anger in Seth’s eyes, but Dean squeezed his hand. 

“Seth, I don’t believe that what happened was ‘your fault’. I don’t think you should necessarily blame yourself, either. You were young, and dealing with addiction, and some-what sounds like some very abusive, manipulative people took advantage of you. Please don’t assume that I’m going to think negatively of you, or of Dean, or Roman.”

Seth looked more shocked than angry, and that was better than him trying to stab someone with a fork. He looked down at the table and nodded. 

“I-okay. Uh. I’m-it’s hard, I figure Roman told you about my...lying, problem, and I’m trying really hard not to lie right now.”

“If it helps, think of it like this: if you lie to me, that makes it harder for me to help Dean and Roman. And if you’re anything like me, helping the people you love is going to be much more important than helping yourself.”

Seth blushed deeply, but nodded. Roman leaned forward. 

“Hey, it’s okay, Seth. I know. I love you.”

“I love you, too, Roman. Uh. So-Roman told you all about-why we got put in prison, and stuff, and-about my drug problem. Uh. I’ve been clean for two years and three months now. I don’t-I haven’t touched anything even approaching a narcotic, and I-I still have…some pretty bad anger issues, and like I said, the-the lying, um. I’ve lost a couple of jobs because of all of that. I’m-I’m currently unemployed.”

“And Dean? What about you?”

“Unemployed, uneducated, crazy, the whole shtick.”

“Dean.”

Roman shot his boyfriend a look, and Dean crossed his arms over his chest. He wouldn’t make eye contact with Finn, or even look at him all that much, and thankfully Finn didn’t mind. 

“All I want in the future is me, and Seth, and Roman all living together in our own place, with plenty of food and not having to do anything sketchy for money. That’s it. And-nevermind.”

“What?”

Dean blushed and curled in on himself more. Seth gently touched his thigh, and Roman leaned closer to him.

“It’s okay, baby. Come on. You know you don’t have to be embarrassed.”

Dean swallowed and shifted, tightening his arms around his chest.

“Kinda want a pet rat.”

Finn smiled at him. 

“A pet rat?”

“Always liked the little guys. They….they have cute hands and noses.”

Roman couldn’t help but smile at Dean. Dean had wanted a rat for years, but had never been in a position where he’d be able to get one. They were one of his favorite animals, though, and Roman and Seth had always wanted to be able to get him one.

“I think-if after a few months, this has been successful, which just from how briefly I’ve known you three, I think it will be-I think we could probably find a way to make that happen.”

Dean’s head shot up and he looked at Finn, the clearest he’d done so far, his blue eyes wide and big. 

“Really? You’re not just saying that so I’ll do what you tell me?”

Finn shook his head, still smiling. 

“I mean it. Oftentimes we find that pet ownership helps a lot of the people we work with. Though I can’t say we’ve ever had someone who wanted a rat.”

Dean relaxed significantly after that, as their food arrived and they began eating. Finn told them a little more of his own background, and told Dean and Seth about the services they could provide. The mention of psychiatric services got both of their attention, and Roman was glad they’d be open to that. He knew his boyfriends wanted to get better. 

“So, we will need to have another meeting in my office where we can go over actual paperwork, schedules, all that, but...I think you three are excellent candidates for this. I would love to keep working with you all and helping you get to a point where you’re stable and comfortable.”

Seth, Dean, and Roman were all quiet, sharing a look between them. None of them really knew what to say or do, no idea how to respond to the prospect of someone helping them in such a huge way. Dean cleared his throat. 

“Uh….thanks, man. We-we really need to get better, and-thank you.”

Finn smiled and waved for the check, and Roman could see Seth and Dean both a little awed at that bright, beautiful smile, just like he’d been.

“I’m more than happy to. Is five on Wednesday okay?”

Seth and Dean both looked to Roman, and he nodded. 

“I have the graveyard shift, so that’s cool.”

Finn smiled and Roman and his partners all couldn’t help but smile, too. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> two sides to every coin, you know?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i know it's short, but i felt like this was a good place to stop this chapter, and...i don't know, y'all, this has been a rough few weeks for me.

Finn panted and whimpered, throwing his head back and grabbing at the chest of the man on top of him. There was plenty to grab, Brock was just...big. Finn gasped when he felt Brock come, and stretched when the bigger man rolled off of him. He laid there, catching his breath, and reached up to run his fingers through his hair. Brock stood from the bed and Finn didn’t bother to watch him. 

“You coming over tomorrow?”

“I’m busy.”

Finn kept his face blank, turning onto his side and facing Brock.

“Alright. Call me when you’re free.”

This was what their relationship had become, for the most part, if it could even be called a ‘relationship’: Brock would come over a few times a week, Finn would cook for him and they’d fuck, no real conversation or affection or anything like that. Finn did his best to keep Brock satisfied, as the many, many times he’d failed showed him that the consequences were more than awful enough to try to avoid. He laid there, watching Brock get dressed and leaving, thinking about how bad it’d gotten. 

Brock had been...really different, when they first met. He’d never been particularly sweet, but Finn didn’t always like sweet men. He wanted affection, though, and Brock had never really been big on that. But for the first few months, he’d been funny and pleasant to be around, and the sex had been great. Brock had been passionate and determined and strong, and Finn liked his men strong in every way.

Then the insults had started. 

Just small things at first, comments about his weight, his looks, what he chose to wear or do. It wasn’t until nine months in that Brock had first put his hands on Finn in a violent way. Then that had just...kept happening, specifically if Finn had somehow ‘messed up’ something. 

He sometimes doubted that he’d messed up anything at any of those times. 

Finn did have some resentment towards himself, though, for staying. He knew in the rational part of his head that this was an abusive relationship, both physically and emotionally, and really, to some degree, sexually as well. But he just couldn’t make himself break it off; again, the rational part of his brain could pinpoint exactly why (fear of being alone, fear of retribution from Brock, etc and so on), but Finn never presumed to be rational one hundred percent of the time. 

Finn sighed and wrapped the blanket tight around himself before sighing. He had to go to the non-profit to meet with Roman and his partners soon. 

Roman. Now  _ there _ was a  _ man _ . 

Finn had been immediately drawn to Roman on the physical level; who wouldn’t be? Roman was massive and clearly strong, and then Finn had spoken to him, heard his story and his struggle, and then meeting his partners-God, Seth and Dean, they were gorgeous, too-and Finn wanted, truly, to help them all. He knew how rough life could get, and they all seemed like genuinely good men. Life had just been particularly rough at all of them.

Finn stood and stretched, not bothering to put clothes on. He was about to shower anyway, why should he go through the effort?

\---

Someone knocked and Finn looked up. 

“Come in.”

He smiled at Dean, Seth, and Roman-Seth and Roman were both wearing glasses this time around, and they both looked absurdly handsome in them. 

“Hello! How are you three?”

They each took a seat in front of Finn’s desk and made themselves comfortable-or gave the appearance of trying. Dean curled up in the seat as best he could, and Seth tried to cross his legs and stay still. Roman seemed much less fidgety than his partners, but still nervous. Finn really couldn’t keep the smile off his face around these three. 

“We’re….alright.”

“We’ve been sleeping in the car again.”

Finn frowned. He knew that feeling well. 

“You were staying with friends, yeah?”

“Yeah, but-their apartment only lets them have guests for so long before they make you leave. We went over the two week limit, so...back to the car.”

Finn took a deep breath and pulled out a standard stack of forms, handing them to each of the men in front of him.

“Well, let’s see if we can get that fixed. Roman, you have a steady job, yes?”

Roman nodded and gave him the information about his job; what he did, who he worked for, how much he made. It wasn’t a whole lot, but it was a good start. Finn looked up a few of the apartment complexes they tended to go to first for people and looked at a few options. He’d already emailed the various landlords, all of whom he had an excellent relationship with, and they’d been open to renting to Roman and Dean and Seth.

“Is one bedroom alright? I assumed since you’re all together, there wasn’t much need for more.”

He could clearly see at least two of the men in front of him blush. Dean grinned. 

“Good assumption.”

Finn laughed a little and showed them a few of the options, happily answering any questions the trio had. They seemed....a little hesitant to choose, but Roman finally settled on one, and Finn could see that his partners were in agreement. He liked that about the three of them, when one of them made a decision to do something, the other two were there to back him up. 

It was nice. 

Finn contacted the landlord again and soon got a fax of the lease.

“A benefit of this apartment is that all the utilities are covered in the rent. I think all you have to pay for is things like internet and cable, if you need those. And a pet fee, when the time comes.”

Roman and Dean and Seth all went over the lease together, talking quietly amongst themselves, and sometimes-Finn noticed-seeming to communicate without words at all, just eye contact and small gestures. He smiled at that. Finn loved love, and he loved seeing people in happy relationships. These three had managed to make it work, and Finn...tried very hard to ignore the pang of envy in his chest.

Once the three men had signed whatever they needed to sign, Finn brought up the forms for the monthly stipend. It helped that one of them at least already had a steady income, and they were all quick to sign whatever was needed for that. Dean curled back up in the chair and wrapped his arms around his knees, resting his head against them, slightly rocking back and forth. He made a quiet noise and Seth and Roman both took notice, and Finn tilted his head, watching.

“Dean?”

“Dean, babe, what’s up?”

“Pen felt bad.”

Finn winced. He understood that feeling as well, the small sensory grossness of something as seemingly trivial as a pen. He dug through his drawer and found another one, that he in particular liked, and he set it in front of Dean and spoke quietly.

“Here. I know some pens can feel really bad.”

Dean tested the new one out on a piece of paper and sighed, his shoulders relaxing a little. 

“Thank you.”

Finn bit his lip. 

“So...you two-Seth, Dean, you seemed interested in finding some mental health services?”

Dean and Seth both blushed, but nodded. Seth cleared his throat, brushing his hair behind his ear.

“Uh...yeah, we-I know I need like, therapy or something. I don’t know.”

“I don’t...really know what I need, either, but-something. Kinda-kinda tired of having….all those incidents.”

Seth squeezed Dean’s hand and Roman quietly told him he loved him, and Finn appreciated that  they were so open with declarations of love.

“Dean, I hope you know that I don’t-I don’t think less of you for having those episodes. I know how that goes, I-hell, I had a pretty bad one myself last week. It just happens. All we can do is cope with it.”   
Dean hesitantly looked up at him and made eye contact, and they didn’t keep it for long, but Finn felt like it was long enough for the truth to be communicated. Dean nodded and repositioned himself in the chair. 

“Thanks.”

Finn smiled and noticed Roman looking at him with a peculiar look on his face, but ignored it for the moment. 

“Now, onto job placement-”

\---

Finn took a ragged breath and looked at himself in the mirror. His face was gonna bruise, he knew it, and he wasn’t looking forward to going into work with that tomorrow. He didn’t let his mind stray to thinking about what Roman, Dean, and Seth would say when they saw it when Finn came by to help them move in. Finn shut his eyes and steeled himself, pressing a wet, cold rag against the bruising skin for a few minutes before leaving the bathroom. He headed back to the kitchen and went back to cooking, putting a smile on. Brock came up behind him, pressing his front to Finn’s back, wrapping his arms around his waist. 

“You almost done in here?”

“Mhm. About five minutes left on this and I’ll bring it out to you.”

Brock patted Finn on the ass. 

“Good. Bring me a beer, too.”

“Got it.”

Finn relaxed once Brock made his way back to the living room, and Finn took another deep breath, pulling his phone out of his pocket as it rang. His eyes widened at the sight of Seth’s phone number.

“Seth? Is something wrong?”

“Oh-uh….no, but-uh...I just kinda wanted to talk to you, I guess?”

Finn blushed despite himself. 

“Oh-I’d love to, but-give me a few minutes, I’ve got to finish something up-uh-yeah, just hold on a moment-”

“Oh, yeah-if it’s a bad time, I can-”

“No, just-I want to talk to you too, Seth-just have to be on hold a moment-”

“Okay, if-if you’re sure-”

Finn set the phone down and got Brock’s food on a plate-the man ate a crazy amount of food and Finn remembered to grab a beer out of the fridge as well, taking it into the living room where Brock was sitting and watching the news. 

“Here you are, I hope it tastes good! I-uh-I have to take a call for the non-profit, I’m going to go to the bedroom so you can eat in peace, if that’s alright?”

Brock had already started eating and waved his hand at Finn.

“Whatever. I’ll be in in a little while.”

He smacked Finn on the ass and went back to eating and Finn grabbed his own plate of food and his phone and closed the bedroom door, hoping Brock would be a while. Finn got comfortable on the bed and put the phone on speaker. 

“Hey, sorry about that-”

“No, it’s cool, it’s-yeah, I mean, I am calling kinda late, sorry-”

“It’s alright, hope you don’t mind if I eat while we talk-”

“Oh, no-of course not, uh-how was your day?”

Finn paused in bringing the fork to his mouth. He hadn’t had someone ask how his day was in...more than a year. It was weird. But nice.

“It-it was really good, for the most part. Calm. And yours? Are you excited for tomorrow?”

“Yes! I-yeah, I’m….still kinda in shock over it, I mean. We’re gonna like….have our  _ own _ place. Where we can  _ live _ .”

Finn laughed around a mouthful of food and swallowed, feeling fond at Seth’s tone.

“Yes, that is the goal. And you’re ready for your appointments this week?”

They had found Seth a doctor and a therapist to start with, though there was always a chance that they wouldn’t click with him and he’d have to find different ones, but Finn would be there to help. 

“Yeah-I got all my paperwork and stuff ready and-Roman and Dean have been helping me remember dates and stuff, but I have all the important stuff written down-”

“Good, good. Where are those two tonight, by the way?”

“Uh...they’re actually asleep, right now. In the car, I’m-I’m outside. Didn’t wanna wake them.”

Finn smiled, blushing again. Seth was so sweet with his partners, all three of them were with each other. 

“Couldn’t sleep?”

“Not really. Like I said...uh….kinda wanted to talk to you.”

Finn bit his lip.

“I-I’m happy I’m someone you want to talk to.”   
They were both quiet for a minute, and Finn felt very much like it was building to something. 

“Finn, uh-I-do you-”

The door to the bedroom opened and Brock came strolling in, confident and aggressive, and Finn quickly turned the phone off of speaker. 

“Uh-I’m sorry, I’ll have to call you back. Or-I’ll see you tomorrow, yes? For our appointment?”

“Y-yeah, I-I guess-sorry, I-”

Finn lowered his voice. 

“Don’t worry, I’ll see you tomorrow, I promise.”   
Finn knew Seth had sounded hurt and upset, but he didn’t want Brock to hear him talking to Seth. Finn could tell that he had a tone in his voice whenever he talked to or about those three men. Brock laid on the bed and Finn cleared his plate off and set his phone away, smiling and unbuttoning his shirt, very aware of what was to come.

\---

Finn waited at the apartment complex. He was there early, he knew he was, but he liked to get to places he needed to be at early. It helped his anxiety, and gave him some time to think about the men he was meeting. He still felt bad about having to hang up on Seth as suddenly as he did last night, but he knew it had been the right thing to do. Finn hadn’t bothered to cover his bruise with makeup, assuming he’d use the same story with Roman, Seth, and Dean that he’d used with his coworkers. 

He looked up at the sound of a car pulling in, and smiled when he heard the very clear sounds of Seth singing along to something on the radio. The three men got out of the car, Roman giving each of his partners a quick kiss, before they noticed Finn. 

“Hey!”

Finn blushed a bit when all of them rushed over to him, looking rather similar to a pack of very happy, wide-eyed puppies, and Finn blushed more when Roman pulled him into a hug. 

“Thank you, Finn-”

“It’s-you’re welcome, but you’re squeezing-a little tight-”

Roman pulled away, looking at Finn and frowning.

“What-that’s a nasty bruise, what happened?”

“Boxing accident at the gym. It happens.”

Roman still frowned, and Finn could see Seth and Dean with similar looks.

“Okay. Uh-sorry for-the bear hug, got a little excited.”

“No need to be sorry, it’s an exciting day. You’ve all already met the landlord, yes?”

“Met with him yesterday.”

“Wonderful. You’ve got the keys?”

“Right with the car keys.”

“I think we’re all ready, then. Is...I imagine you don’t have much to bring in?”

All three of the men looked at each other. 

“Not...not really, no, just a couple of bags of stuff. We uh-don’t even have a bed, or anything.”

Finn smiled.

“Yes, you do.”

Dean narrowed his eyes at Finn, and Finn cheerfully took the keys and led them to their apartment-after taking one of the bags, he was there to help, after all-and unlocked the door, strolling in and setting the bag he held on the couch. He turned to see Seth, Dean, and Roman all looking around, wide-eyed. 

Finn hadn’t mentioned that he’d paid to have the apartment furnished before they moved in. He wanted it to be a nice surprise for the three of them, a little housewarming gift. 

“What-who-”

Finn took a seat on the couch and stretched his legs out, setting his feet on the coffee table in front of him.

“I hope it’s all alright, I didn’t know if any of you had a preference on style, or materials-Dean, if any of the textures bother you, let me know and I’ll have it switched-”

“Did. Finn, did you buy us furniture?”

Finn blushed as Roman sat down next to him, while Dean and Seth set about exploring the apartment.

“I wanted you all to be comfortable. Sleeping on the floor wouldn’t be very conducive to a happier, more comfortable life for the three of you. Either way, the place I bought it from gives me a discount for things for the non-profit. They write it off as a charitable donation and I get to help people have happier homes.”

Roman was silent for a few moments and Finn turned to see him crying, and Finn sat up straight, gently rubbing Roman’s shoulder and arm. 

“Roman? I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to overstep-”

Roman shook his head and wiped his eyes with the back of his hand. 

“No, no-it’s not that, I-it’s just a lot, all of this-”

“Rome? Baby?”

Seth and Dean immediately sat with their partner, Dean’s arms going around Roman and Seth kneeling in front of them.

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing-I’m just happy, and-overwhelmed-I’ve wanted us to have something-anything even remotely like this for so long-”

Dean kissed Roman’s cheek and Seth brought Roman’s hand to his lips, kissing over the rough skin of his fingers and knuckles. Finn felt like he was almost intruding on the moment. 

“I know, Rome, I know. You’ve worked harder than any of us to make this happen. I know you have, Dean knows you have. We love you so, so much, and we know we wouldn’t have any of this without you.”

“You know you’re the most important person in the world to us, right? We’d’ve been dead years ago if it weren’t for you. You kept us going all these years, you’re a fucking miracle, Roman.”

Roman was still crying, and Finn licked his lips. He gently rested his hand on Roman’s knee.

“I know this is a lot. And I know how much having this space-this safety, the security, of it, I know how much this means to you and Seth and Dean. I’m so happy to be able to help you with this, because-I’ve worked with a lot of people over the years, but you….all three of you, I think are the most deserving ones I’ve ever met.”

Roman wrapped his arms around Finn again, and Finn happily accepted the hug. It was really the most affection he’d had in years, and it was nice, and he rubbed his palm over Roman’s back, letting the man cry against him. Finn did notice Dean and Seth staring at him before glancing at each other, and Finn blushed. Roman pulled away after a few moments, brown eyes big and wet and absolutely lovely. 

“Uh-sorry, for that-”

“I’m used to it, Roman. Lots of people get emotional about these things.”

Roman licked his lips-his gorgeous, full lips, that Finn tried not to think about in conjunction with the large arms and the warmth the man exuded both figuratively and literally-and smiled. 

“Thank you, I mean it, this-this is more than I ever thought-thank you, Finn. I-what can I do to repay you?”

Finn tilted his head. 

“You don’t have to think about that. I’m not doing this for reward or recognition, Roman, I’m doing this because I like to help. There’s no ‘repaying’ me because there’s nothing to repay. I’m just happy that you’re all happy and actually living inside.”

That got a few quiet laughs from the three men and Finn smiled, blushing again when his stomach growled. Dean grinned and stood. 

“Hell, at least let us buy you dinner.”

“Yeah, that’s like, the least we can do. If...I mean, if you’re not busy.”   
Seth had reached up to push a few strands of hair behind his ear, and he looked unbearably cute doing so. Roman reached out and covered Finn’s hand with his own, and Finn tried to not think about how much bigger Roman’s hand was. 

“Please?”

Finn swallowed, feeling a little embarrassed with all three men staring at him as they were, but he nodded. He didn’t have anywhere else to be for the night, since Brock was busy. Finn wouldn’t admit it, but he’d rather be here anyway. Dean ordered pizza and Finn watched them all explore the apartment; they seemed very happy with the bedroom, and the fact that Finn had bought them one of the biggest beds available. They were all grown men over six feet tall each, they needed a big, comfortable space to sleep. Dean came back out to the living room and sat next to Finn, tapping his fingers on his legs. 

“Oh, Dean, I actually-I almost forgot, I have something for you.”

Dean raised his eyebrows and looked at Finn-well, at his chest, but Finn assumed he was a little overwhelmed, and that was alright. Finn grabbed his coat and pulled out a fidget cube, handing it to Dean. 

“These help me a lot at work. It’s got a few different things on them, to click or rub. I thought….maybe it might help you a bit, too.”

Dean inspected the cube a bit before trying out the different things on it, seeming to mostly enjoy the switch that made a very satisfying clicking sound. Dean bounced up and down on the couch a little, and his excitement bled over to Finn.

“Thank you! I-thank you. I really like it, Finn-I like-uh-sorry, my-I’m-a lot is-”

“Do what you need. If-I mean, I’m a little-in the same spot myself-”

Finn knew it could be hard to understand the need to stim, but Dean nodded, and rolled the cube between his hands, happily squeezing it and making quiet humming noises. Finn bit his lip and smiled, shutting his eyes and letting himself flap his hands for a moment. He enjoyed seeing Dean happy, and it was always nice to share moments like these with people who’d understand. He heard the other two men come back into the room, and tried to contain himself. 

“Hey, it’s cool. If you need to, go ahead.”

Finn blushed, and Dean stood to show Roman and Seth the fidget cube. 

“Finn got it for me-I think it’s gonna help me not freak out more-”

“Awesome, babe.”

Roman glanced at Finn and nodded, mouthing the words ‘thank you’, and Finn nodded back. He bit his lip and flapped his hands a little more and brought them up to press his palms over his face. The pressure soothed him and he took a deep breath, happy to be around people who wouldn’t judge him for needing to do that. Dean came back to the couch and sat next to him, grabbing his hand and squeezing it. The action was a little surprising, but Finn squeezed his eyes shut at the pleasant sensation. Pressure was a big thing for him and Dean hummed, rubbing his palm over Finn’s next. 

“It’s nice to-thanks for letting me do that. Uh. I kinda-it’s nice to do that with someone who gets it, you know?”

Finn nodded and let Dean continue to hold his hand. 

“It really is. Do-I mean, Roman and Seth, do you-”

“Yeah, I don’t really hold back around them. They’ve never minded or anything, they’ve always just been really...they don’t get it, but they accept it and love it.”

Finn smiled, Dean tracing the lines of his palm with his fingertips. It was nice to be in a home where affection was so openly given, to be with men who had no hesitations about touching and being close. Finn was more than happy to let Dean continue playing with his hand, and they quietly talked for a while until Roman answered the door and paid for the food and they all sat down, smiles all around. Finn tried not to blush when he ended up squished between Dean and Seth on the couch, all of them watching some ridiculous horror movie. After a point, Finn realized that Seth had put an arm around his shoulder, and Dean had pressed up to his side. Roman was sitting on the floor in front of them, leaning back against Finn’s legs, and he felt very surrounded, in a good, warm way.

\---


End file.
